Computerized automotive service and diagnostic equipment systems for measuring or testing various parameters and for providing maintenance or repair procedure instructions to an operator are generally known. Such systems utilize a central control processor and various data input and storage means including, for example, vehicle-mounted instrument sensors, manual data input consoles, and electronically-stored databases.
Systems that utilize vehicle-mounted instruments enable sensors or measuring devices in the instruments to provide measurement signals to a central processor for comparison with data or computation of vehicle conditions. In addition to providing input or measured data, vehicle-mounted sensors enable live or real-time monitoring of various conditions.
Measured data and operator-input data provided through, for example, a keyboard or similar means, can be compared to pre-stored data or parameters calculated from one or more of pre-stored data, measured data, or user-input data. Data and computed or measured results can be compared to known, pre-stored data for specific makes and models of vehicles or parts to identify conditions or to diagnose problems. Possible problems and conditions are pre-stored in the memory of the computer and are displayed or presented to the operator via a display screen or printer.
In addition, such systems can include step-by-step adjustment or repair procedure instructions displayed in response to measured or input data in order to guide an operator or technician through an adjustment or repair procedure.
The present invention relates to computerized vehicle servicing and diagnostic systems and, more particularly, to such systems that communicate with or access remotely located computers via the Internet that have pre-stored data or that utilize pre-stored data and parameters. A further aspect of the invention relates to utilizing the same to access remotely located computers that are interfaced with other equipment or human operators for real-time or frequently updated information.
The present invention is directed to an apparatus and method for the exchange and sharing of information on the Internet. The popularity of the Internet has promoted development of improved standards in communication technology. One such standard is "HTTP" or Hypertext Transmission Protocol. HTTP is the underlying protocol that allows information to flow through the World Wide Web of the Internet. Specifically, http allows the transfer of information between dissimilar types of computers, enabling any computer system that can process HTTP to communicate with any computer in the world that can also process HTTP, regardless of the specific computer architecture (PC, Apple, RISC, etc.), operating system (MS-DOS, Windows 95, Windows NT, Unix, etc.), or spoken language. By using HTTP equipment and inventory systems at different locations around the world can use common information databases and exchange information or share data easily. Furthermore, individuals at remote locations can communicate in real time with or direct the operations of a computer control located at a repair or service site.
The most notable characteristic of the Internet in current times is that it easily enables information to be requested and retrieved from virtually anywhere. Once a user has installed a Web browser on his computer and is connected to the Internet through an Internet service provider (ISP) he can access a Web page from any World Wide Web (WWW) server throughout the world. There is no need for special configuration or compatibility requirements because of the universal nature of the communication standards. The ability to access a select, remote location for data or programs alleviates problems associated with long development cycles for custom software, cumbersome integration of multiple service applications on a single computer, periodic updates involving CD-ROM or floppy discs, and remote diagnostic software written as an addition to the standard application but not integrated.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,404,639, issued on Sep. 13, 1983, prior to the emergence of the Internet and the World Wide Web, is directed to a communicating network of computers stationed at various service agencies and sharing various databases in order to provide service agencies with up to date data maintained in a central location. Such a network, however, is limited to users having dedicated computers and common or compatible interface hardware and software.
Another aspect of the present invention is directed to the software and manual methods for managing textual phrases used in the vehicle equipment system of the present invention, hereafter referred to as the International Language Management (ILM) system. The software extracts phrases and builds a database of the phrases, provides an editing page where target phrases for various languages may be edited for minor correction, and generates target resource files for compilation into dynamic libraries that are used by the vehicle service system to operate in any of the various language provided within the system.
A further aspect of the invention relates to implementing 32-bit software in the present invention vehicle service system for improved overall performance and compatibility with the latest developments in computer technology. In particular, the preferred embodiment of the invention utilizes Microsoft's new 32-bit Windows.TM. application.
Yet a further aspect of the invention is directed to a novel, flexible navigation control that allows the ability to facilitate process selection for the user so that the user may run the system from either random access or sequential progression. The required processes sometimes need to be activated individually and at other times need to follow a pre-determined sequential progression. In the past, the pre-determined sequence was hard-coded into the software and the end user could not alter it or could only alter it minimally. The present system provides a navigational framework with two modules, the Menu Mode (random) and the Wizard Mode (sequential). The Menus Mode provides direct access to any required process and Wizard Mode provides a flexible control of the process sequences and allows for user modification.
Another aspect of the present invention vehicle service system is the enhanced display of both a live gauge and pre-stored adjustment instructions for the operator or technician to simultaneously monitor measured data and perform adjustment or servicing steps on a vehicle either directly or through specialized equipment.